Where to live in Oregon? (Portland, Eugene: find a job, schools, university)

[chrissy1913]

Hi all!
I am looking to relocate, and Oregon is one of my top choices, but my knowledge on the state is rather limited. I was hoping people who know much more about some of the cities and/or areas of the state will be able to aid me in my search! Thanks for any help you can give! Here is what im looking for.

-A pretty temperate climate, where i get all 4 seasons, even if just a little. If it tips just a touch to the cold or hot side, though, thats fine.
-Not flat! I love mountains, but hills are okay too. I am okay with living on the coast, but dont care either way.
-Lush vegetation, no desert for me please.
-Im okay with some rain, but not tons.
-if i had my choice i would take mountains over beach. And i love woods and national parks.
-I would love to live near a lake, but its not a must.
-It needs to have a university with grad programs. I dont care whether its a big or small school though.
-I either want a small college town, or a smaller town (150,000 people or less) within 45 minutes or so of a bigger city.
-hopefully a semi-affordable town/city
-i hate traffic!
-I would also prefer a more liberal than conservative area, not too crazy, just leaning more to the liberal side.

Im also considering California, Washington, Montana, Colorado and Wyoming.

Can anyone offer any ideas? Or even help me reduce my search field down from the Washington as a whole, to a certain area of the state?

[Silverfall]

To access a graduate university it means Portland (PSU, Lewis and Clark, U of P), Salem area (WOU, Willamette), Corvallis (OSU), Eugene (U of O), and Ashland (SOU).

Bend would meet your 4 seasons requirement, but not the university. I think Ashland has 4 seasons, but not sure about that. All of the other choices are in the valley. We don't get a lot of snow here.

Eugene and Portland are both over 150,000 people and Salem is really close to that. Corvallis meets much of your criteria, but I'm not sure it meets the affordable criteria.

If you have something specific you want to study in grad school it seems to make more sense to find those schools that offer that program and then narrow down your choices from there.

[juliemerrittrobinson]

Hi Everyone,

Interestingly I am in much the same boat as Chrissy, with the exception of the grad program as I have already completed mine. I currently live in NE Montana and am looking to move to the mountains. I found out I am much more of a mountain-person than a plains-person. I need a good place to raise children where a single mom with a graduate degree can afford to live.

Please send suggestions.

Thanks!!

[sarahkate_m]

Originally Posted by chrissy1913

Hi all!
I am looking to relocate, and Oregon is one of my top choices, but my knowledge on the state is rather limited. I was hoping people who know much more about some of the cities and/or areas of the state will be able to aid me in my search! Thanks for any help you can give! Here is what im looking for.

-A pretty temperate climate, where i get all 4 seasons, even if just a little. If it tips just a touch to the cold or hot side, though, thats fine.
-Not flat! I love mountains, but hills are okay too. I am okay with living on the coast, but dont care either way.
-Lush vegetation, no desert for me please.
-Im okay with some rain, but not tons.
-if i had my choice i would take mountains over beach. And i love woods and national parks.
-I would love to live near a lake, but its not a must.
-It needs to have a university with grad programs. I dont care whether its a big or small school though.
-I either want a small college town, or a smaller town (150,000 people or less) within 45 minutes or so of a bigger city.
-hopefully a semi-affordable town/city
-i hate traffic!
-I would also prefer a more liberal than conservative area, not too crazy, just leaning more to the liberal side.

Im also considering California, Washington, Montana, Colorado and Wyoming.

Can anyone offer any ideas? Or even help me reduce my search field down from the Washington as a whole, to a certain area of the state?

Here's a link to a thread I started. It's locked so no one can add to it, but you can still access the embedded links.

The embedded links are strictly informational & may enhance some of your current information.

Moving to Oregon? Check in here first! Links!

If you search city data, you can put in the terms liberal & oregon.

Kate

[Steve97415]

First, pick the university, not the location. Just because a university has grad programs, broadly speaking, doesn't mean they are equivalent in kind and quality.

Second, trying to pick your heart's desire in a state with 12% unemployment is like a shipwrecked sailor mulling over which island he should try and swim to. It might be more than a year before you can find a job here. If and when you do, you won't be a position to be choosy about where it is. Regardless of where in the state you initially decide to settle, you'll probably end up moving for employment reasons anyway.

[todd00]

kudos for your efforts on that thread, kate. be a good sticky for useful links in my opinion.

and youre very right about grad programs not all being created equal, steve. the rep of the program does matter, especially with the competition these days.

good luck.

[Oregonian_Abroad]

I grew up in Medford, Jackson County (Southern Oregon) and I think you should look into Ashland. It meets quite a bit of your criteria, although I don't think there is a single place in Oregon which meets every single one. Southern Oregon has four seasons, isn't very rainy, has beautiful mountains and plenty of lakes within driving distance. There are big differences between the towns though. You might also consider Jacksonville if you're willing to commute half an hour to the University. I would suggest staying out of Medford or the towns around it in in the middle of the Rogue Valley because the middle of the valley is basically desert (especially out towards White City), although in Medford the desertness is well-concealed by development. Medford is basically the generic middle-American rat-race town, whereas Jacksonville and Ashland are the towns in Jackson County with the most character (and they do have a lot of character). Those are my two cents, take 'em or leave 'em.

[Hawkbacker]

I would agree with "Silverfall" and "Oregonian_abroad". I have visited all those cities and think Ashland, Corvalis, and Eugene would all be worth considering. Portland's metro population is over two million so that would rule that out. I was not as impressed with Salem. Ashland is a cute town with a great little downtown (Lithia Park is great) and has skiing within about a half hour at Mt. Ashland, so plenty of mountain hiking too. It would likely be your best bet although it is a bit far to any major city, Portland is about 4.5 hrs, San Francisco about 5.5 hrs, but Medford is about 15 minutes away and has most major retailers with a population of about 75,000. SOU is in town and seems to have a pretty good reputation. It is not nearly as rainy as up in the Willamette valley but is still wooded. If you like it green, Corvalis is your best bet; some nice farm country and the coast isn't too far away. It is a decent town and OSU is a pretty good school. Eugene is also nice; has a great trail systems on the Willamette River and a nicer dowtown than Corvalis.

[ceciself]

Hi, Your message concerning where to live in Oregon got my attention because I'd also like to move there.
What's the employment picture for Oregon?
I'm a Secondary English Teacher, so not in your enviable position, but can tell you that from living in Pasadena for almost 22 years, that there is so much diversity and accessibility to landscapes!! CA is really pricey, and even in good times it's hard to find employment.

[delta07]

Originally Posted by ceciself

Hi, Your message concerning where to live in Oregon got my attention because I'd also like to move there.
What's the employment picture for Oregon?
I'm a Secondary English Teacher, so not in your enviable position, but can tell you that from living in Pasadena for almost 22 years, that there is so much diversity and accessibility to landscapes!! CA is really pricey, and even in good times it's hard to find employment.

Do a search on employment and teachers in the OR forum, as both of these topics have been covered extensively.